Even in the rain
by Plural Force
Summary: The snow may get stained with blood, but the rain will wash it all away. Most of the time... a talk between brotherlike figures, at night, in the rain. Oneshot. [no shounenai]


Hey all. Little old me is back, with another one-shot. I've decided now that I like one-shots; they help release my creativity as well as my frustration of having writer's block for my two other long-running stories. Anyway, I really like this piece (took me almost two hours!) Read on, and enjoy! (RandomRathFan, if you're reading this, in answer to your question, "owari" means "end".)

Oh yes, this fic was inspired by the song "Dawn" from .hack/Legend of the twilight. The music from the Best of Inuyasha 2 CD goes really well with this as well, though. (Except "Itazura na Kiss"... too upbeat :shivers:) Um... :cough: Heh heh... well, read and enjoy! And review, please!

Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Knights.

Even in the rain

It came pouring down in torrents, creating rivers through the city. The rain swept over the capital city of Draqueen, washing away ages of dust from within. From the heavens, it came down upon the city in a never-ending onslaught.

In the midst of the storm, a lone figure trudged through. He held up a beaten old brown umbrella to protect most of his body from the rain; his lower legs, however, were thoroughly soaked. The figure shivered and pulled his black cloak in closer, putting up a hood over his greenish-brown hair.

"Ah, it's no use," he grumbled, ripping his hood back down again. "I'm all wet anyway." The boy looked up, revealing a rain-soaked face crossed by two large scars to anyone who might have cared to look at him. His bright green eyes scanned the now-deserted cobbled road, searching for any other living soul.

"Man, it's really coming down tonight," the boy muttered, leaning the useless umbrella against his shoulder. "Am I the _only_ one still out here...? Ah, well, I guess it's too close to the Dragon Castle, anyway. Hm? What's that?" He noticed for the first time a darkened figure slumped over in the distance.

Moving closer, the green-haired boy was able to identify his so-called 'darkened figure'. It was another boy, about his size, with red hair made brownish from the rain, except for one little splash of white that stuck out vividly against the rest of his darkened hair. Bright red eyes looked up toward the pitch-black sky, toward the rain, focusing on one tiny patch of stars visible through the storm.

"Hey! Rath!"

The red-haired boy looked away from the sky and focused instead on the newcomer approaching him.

"Thatz," returned Rath, acknowledging the other's presence as he sat down beside him, folding up the now-forgotten umbrella and placing it aside.

"So, what're you doing out here, Rath?" inquired Thatz, looking over at his friend. "It's the middle of the night and all... and it's raining."

"I dunno." Rath had returned to looking at the sky. "I guess I couldn't sleep... so I decided to come out here. Look at all the rain."

"You're sitting in the middle of the road," pointed out Thatz. "Someone could've run you over."

"There are no people out this time at night, especially in this weather. Besides, I like sitting in the rain."

"Whatever. Hey, I thought you said you hated the rain?"

"That's _snow_, Thatz," corrected Rath, tearing his gaze from the heavens to return his companion's gaze. "I hate the snow. I don't mind the rain. Hey, what are _you_ doing out here in the middle of the night, anyway?"

"Eh heh..." Thatz gave a nervous laugh.

Rath grinned at his friend. "I see now. You were sneaking out to the Dragon Fighter's guild, weren't you?"

"Heh... yeah."

"Man. Alfeegi must be getting real strict about the gambling thing, huh?"

"Yeah. Geez, I swear, I turn a corner and he's there. It's like he knows my every move. The only time I can get out is at night."

Pause. The Fire Knight stared at his friend Thatz. "You guys must be really serious about it if you have to sneak out in the middle of the night just to go gambling."

"I suppose. Hey, we're just a bunch of guys who like to have fun, what can we do?"

"You can stop gambling, for one thing. That might ease Alfeegi's nerves a little."

"Oh, so now you're on _his_ side, eh?" teased Thatz. Rath laughed at his friend's words. After knowing him for a while, Rath could tell when Thatz was just joking.

There was a long silence in which both of them just stared at the sky from which the rain was pouring. Each had their own thoughts, yet both of them were thinking about the rain.

"Hey, Rath?" Thatz finally said.

"Yeah?"

"Why is it..." Thatz struggled to find words for a moment. "Why is it that you hate the snow, but not the rain? They're almost like the same things, you know."

"I don't know... I guess it's that 'almost' that makes such a huge difference," answered Rath slowly.

Thatz looked curiously over at his friend, who was still staring into the rain.

"I mean, the snow may get stained with blood..."

Back at the Dragon Castle, the third of the knights stood out on his balcony, the rain soaking his bedclothes and his long blonde hair. Blue eyes landed on the two sitting figures in the distance. Rune could feel the connection to the rain, too.

"...but the rain will wash it all away."

The Earth Knight looked over at his companion for another moment, before returning his gaze to the stormclouds above. To him it looked as though there was no starting point; the rain just came down from out of nowhere, circling and falling down upon him. It splashed upon his face and ran down his scars, and got into his messy green-brown hair. It soaked into his black coat and gathered upon his forgotten brown umbrella.

_The rain really does wash everything all away_, he thought.

"Thatz?"

"Yeah?"

"Did I do the right thing?"

"What?" Thatz's head snapped around and he stared incredulously at his friend. "What the heck are you talking about, Rath?"

"I mean... everything, Thatz." Rath's face was unreadable as he continued to talk. "When I follow my heart, I don't even know what I'm trying to accomplish. When I follow my sword, I just end up making it bloody."

"Rath..."

"So many people have died because of me... demons, humans..." he sighed. "I even killed those fairies. I'm too afraid of myself to tell Rune. And when I made the decision to sacrifice myself to stop Nadil, I just got one of my closest friends killed." The boy looked up to the sky, the pain apparent in his eyes now. "Why is everyone so insistent on keeping me alive? I don't even know if it's worth it trying to die anymore. But I don't know any other way to stop the pain..."

Thatz sighed and draped an arm around the Fire Knight's shoulders. "Rath, you're like a brother to me. You know very well that I don't want you dead. Neither does anyone else."

"But..."

"But nothing, Rath!" Thatz drew his arm back, both hands clenched into fists now. "My gosh, do you _try_ to get depressed or something? Look, just put it behind you already! It's in the past! There's _nothing_ you can do about it now!"

"You know it's not that simple, Thatz." Rath looked down at his open palms. "There's so much blood on my hands, not even the rain can wash it off."

Thatz sighed. "Rath..." his voice trailed off hopelessly. Then he grinned, in an attempt to be cheerful. "Hey, the least you could do is to take the throne like you're supposed to, right? I mean, if you leave us now, the entire Dragon Tribe will go up in smoke. Plus, you've got your own pretty lady waiting for you at home. You know Cesia will never let you die."

"Yeah, she's told me. I swear, that girl's a broken record." Rath raised his head and looked directly into his companion's eyes. "Thatz, what do you think I should do? I can't forgive myself for my own past..."

"I don't know, Rath." Thatz spoke firmly. "You know, of all of us, I think you might be the most unstable, even though you act the toughest."

The Fire Knight nodded his agreement.

"Well, whatever you decide to do, just know that I'll always be behind you... oh crap, I think I'm late for gambling," Thatz interrupted himself, slowly standing up. The green-haired boy began to walk down the road again. "You gonna just sit there for a while?" he asked Rath.

"I like the rain."

"Whatever you say. I'll be going now." Thatz started to walk away again, then suddenly stopped.

"Hey, Rath?"

"Yeah, Thatz?"

"If you go and kill yourself... I won't forgive you."

There was a slight pause from behind him. "Yeah, Thatz. I know."

Thatz grinned slightly and continued walking.

As he got further away, the knight's grin turned into a broad smile. Thatz flung his head back and stared up into the rain.

_I guess there are some things that don't wash away... even in the rain._

-OWARI-

-END-


End file.
